North Dakota at St. Thomas || 2/27 (7 p.m.)
20th meeting, UND leads 10-9
St. Paul, Minn. (Schoenecker Arena)

FULL GAME NOTES ARE HERE

GRAND FORKS, N.D. - The final week of the regular season puts North Dakota on the road with a Thursday night stop in St. Paul scheduled for the Fighting Hawks who carry a two-game win streak into the action and are looking to look up the league's sixth seed with a win and a Denver defeat to Kansas City. The Tommies have won 20 games this season and are unbeaten at home in 2024-25 with a 12-0 record, while their unbeaten streak inside Schoernecker Arena stands at 16-0 dating back to last season. North Dakota is the last team to beat the Tommies on their home floor (74-64; Jan. 27, 2024). Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. Fans can follow the action live with UND men's basketball radio play-by-play voice Paul Ralston on KSNR 100.3 FM The Cat or on the iHeart Radio app, while the action can be seen on Midco Sports and the Summit League Network. Live stats will be provided at www.FightingHawks.com.

TIPPING OFF
The Hawks enter game No. 15 of the Summit League schedule with an opportunity to lock up the sixth seed with a win and a Denver loss at Kansas City. The Tommies enter the final weekend of the regular season tied for second in the standings with South Dakota State and have an opportunity to grab a share of the regular season title. 

The Tommies combat Summit League defenses with the second-highest scoring average in the league at 84.0 ppg and hold a league best 8.2 scoring margin. UND averages 77.4 ppg. 

UST is shooting a league high 49.7% from the floor, while the Hawks are shooting 43.3% overall. The Tommies are one of two Summit League teams averaging over 10 makes from three-point range per game and UST ranks second in 3PT FG% at 39.4%. 

The Hawks pace the league in offensive rebounds per game (13.8), rank second in the SL in combined team rebounds (1,101) and average (38.0) and third in margin (+3.3).

SERIES HISTORY
The Hawks meet the Tommies in St. Paul for the 20th meeting all-time in a series that began in January 1923. The two sides split last season's regular season series with each road team claiming a victory. St. Thomas topped the Hawks in Grand Forks on January 4. UND leads the series 10-9, while UST's January win gave the Tommies a 4-3 series lead since the two became league foes beginning with the 2021-22 season which marked the first matchup since 1962. The Hawks are 4-5 against the UST in St. Paul. 

MOST RECENTLY VS. ST. THOMAS
Sophomore guard Mier Panoam produced his second-straight 20-point game and added a career-high dozen rebounds for the first double-double of his career and three more North Dakota players followed with 14 points, but an early deficit proved too much for the Fighting Hawks in an 88-80 loss to the Tommies on January 4 in Grand Forks. UND outscored UST 51-47 in the second half of play on 44% shooting, but the visitors still managed to connect at a high clip of 56.7% from the floor, while notching seven made threes. The Hawks cut into the UST lead early in the second half to trail by just two possessions and then drained a 19-point UST lead down to just seven in the final half minute of play.

PEAK CHASIN'
In early October, North Dakota was tabbed to a sixth-place finish in the Summit League preseason poll. The Hawks were one of six teams to receive a first-place vote and totaled 283 points in a wide open Summit League rankings. North Dakota was just 22 points back of projected No. 5 Oral Roberts which received two first-place nods. St. Thomas edged the Golden Eagles for fourth, while Kansas City (17), South Dakota State (12) and North Dakota State (3) went 1-2-3. The squad's sixth-place appointment, the second highest for UND under Sather, in the preseason rankings is one spot back of last season's fifth-place selection and matches the Hawks' placement prior to the start of the 2020-21 season. The nine-member mid major league produced a collective non-conference record of 69-64. 

LAST TIME OUT
vs. North Dakota State; W, 79-77
North Dakota needed one more stop in the final 11 seconds of Saturday afternoon's 311th clash between the host Fighting Hawks and the visitors from Fargo and junior Eli King delivered. The Caledonia, Minnesota native denied Jacari White's shot on a drive attempt in the waning seconds as the Hawks outlasted their longtime Peace Garden State foe 79-77 in front of a near capacity crowd inside the Betty Englestad Sioux Center.
 
King's block upheld the Hawks' second-to-last possession which saw Mier Panoam make good on a second chance and-one effort which was the second of two offensive rebounds on the possession with the first being grabbed by Amar Kuljuhovic who cleaned up a miss on the second of two free throw attempts by King.

AANNNDDDDD ONNNNNNEEEEEEE
The Hawks have converted 36 and-one opportunities this season with arguably two of the season's biggest coming in Saturday's rivalry win over North Dakota State. Deng Mayar, in his final game inside the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center, took over offensively for the Hawks. He cleaned up a close miss on a drive to the bucket by Panoam with two hands and on the next NDSU possession, the senior swiped the basketball from the Bison's Jacksen Moni, drove the distance and finished an and-one attempt with his back to the basket.

That sequence was a part of a needed close out to the first half for the Hawks, while Mier Panoam's team-leading eighth traditional three-point play of the season in the final seconds of the second half gave the Hawks the lead. Panoam made good on a second chance and-one effort which was the second of two offensive rebounds on the Hawks' final offensive possession.

BETTY BALL
UND closed out its home slate with the win over NDSU. It was the third Summit League victory of the month for the Hawks, all of which occurred in Grand Forks. Four of the Hawks' five league victories were earned inside the Betty, while eight of the squad's 11 wins were at home. In those eight victories, North Dakota averaged 82.1 ppg with a 13.1 scoring margin. The Hawks shot 5.5 percentage points better than their opposition in those contests and carried a 3.1 turnover margin. Overall at home, in 14 games, UND finished with a scoring margin of +4.1, a rebounding margin of +3.7 and a turnover margin of +2.1.

TAKE A (BETTY) BOW
Saturday was the final game inside the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center for three Fighting Hawks. Amar Kuljuhovic, Brian Mathews and Deng Mayar were honored prior to the 1 p.m. tip off with the Bison. Kuljuhovic, a native of Waterloo, Iowa, crossed over 1,000 career points behind two seasons at Lake Land College and two as a Fighting Hawk. He is currently 20 rebounds shy of a collective 1,000 in his collegiate career. Mathews has played in 93 games in his UND career and is a 49% shooter from the floor. The Chicago native has totaled 275 points, 294 rebounds, 46 assists, 18 blocks and 15 steals averaging over 11 minutes per game. Mayar has seen action in 38 games across two seasons in Grand Forks. He crossed over 200 points for his UND career with a 13-point performance. Deng has recorded a pair of double doubles. The trio played key roles in UND earning a Summit League-era best 18 wins last season and the program's best SL regular season finish at tied for second. 

G LEAGUE DEBUT
Former North Dakota standout and 2022-23 Summit League Sixth Man of the Year Matt Norman is continuing his professional career in the Lone Star State as the Orem, Utah native signed with the Texas Legends, the NBA G League affiliate of the Dallas Mavericks, on February 20. In his debut against the Rip City Remix, Norman logged three minutes and scored two points. Texas returns to action in Sioux Falls for action against the Skyforce on February 25 and 27.

Norman returns stateside after spending the 2023-24 season with BC Iverioni Gori of the Georgian Superleague. He averaged 13.0 points, 3.7 rebounds and 2.0 assists, while shooting over 45% from the floor and 40% from range, while averaging 28 minutes per game. 

Norman played in 63 games for the Hawks over two seasons. He averaged over 10 ppg and shot 42.6% from the field. Norman grabbed 175 rebounds, dished out 100 assists and collected 21 steals as he helped the Hawks win 19 games. 

SHARP SHOOTERS
North Dakota's efforts against South Dakota State and Omaha resulted in the squad's top two shooting efforts this season. UND shot 55.2% in a home win against SDSU and most recently fired a clip of 54.2% in a buzzer-beating loss on the road at Omaha. Additionally, the Hawks two best three-point percentage efforts came against the Mavericks and Jackrabbits. UND hit threes at a 56.3% clip against Omaha and drained 52.6% of their attempts against SDSU.

LONG TIME COMING
North Dakota's five-point win over the Jackrabbits snapped an 18-game losing streak to SDSU. It was the first win against South Dakota State since an 89-70 decision on December 15, 2011 in Grand Forks. It marked the first Summit League win for UND against the Jackrabbits and just the second in its Division I Era (2008-09).

CROWN HIM
Junior guard Eli King's statement stuffing of NDSU's final shot attempt in Saturday's win was the latest in a series of big moments by the Minnesotian in the month of February. Known for his all around ability to fill up any stat column in a box score, King's scoring prowess has been on display in the month of February. In the home victory over South Dakota State, King's career-best 24 points, the fourteenth time he has crossed over double-figures in his UND career, came behind career highs in shot attempts (16) and shots made (10). Two weeks later, King matched that scoring effort with another two dozen points on eight made shots and a career-best 17 attempts. He nailed four three-point shots and was one of five Hawks to hit multiple free throws as UND notched a season-high 29 makes from the stripe. King has now led UND at least once in points, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks in a single game this season.

MIER-IAD OF POINTS
Sophomore Mier Panoam's first season in Grand Forks can be labeled with multiple descriptors. One of which is impactful. The Tulane transfer enters the final stretch of Summit League play with the 13th best scoring average overall (13.2) and the 12th highest scoring average (15.5) against league opponents. Panoam has scored in double figures 21 times this season with six twenty-point games and a career-high 28 in UND's road win at Denver. 

SCORING NUGGETS
While effort on the defensive end of floor has been the focus of late for the Hawks, scoring has not been an issue. Some scoring nuggets to consider as the Hawks roll down the stretch of Summit League play:
*Treysen Eaglestaff is one of just two SL players to score 40 points in a game this season with his career-high 40 coming against Alabama and he is one of just two players with multiple games of 30 or more points (NDSU's J. White).
*Four SL players have made 12 or more shots in a game this season. Two of them reside on UND's roster in Eaglestaff (league-best 15 vs. Alabama) and Mier Panoam (12 vs. Denver).
*Five different Hawks have recorded 20-point games this season (Eaglestaff, Panoam, Woodson, King, Kuljuhovic)

HANDLE WITH CARE
The Hawks have committed nine or fewer turnovers in half of its 14 Summit League games with UND averaging just under nine per conference win. North Dakota committed just six turnovers in the win against SDSU, none of which occurred in the first half. The Hawks are +1.21 in turnover margin in Summit League play which is currently the third-best such mark in the conference and only the fourth above even. UND's 1.24 assist-to-turnover ratio in 14 SL contests is the fourth-best clip in the league.

NOW BOARDING
The offensive glass has been controlled by UND in 22 of the squad's 29 games and the Hawks have been out-rebounded on the offensive glass four times. 

UND has grabbed 12+ offensive rebounds in 24 of 29 games. Nine Hawks have recorded 10+ offensive boards this season led by Amar Kuljuhovic's 86. Mier Panoam follows with 66 and Brian Mathews has added 42.

North Dakota ranks 15th nationally in offensive rebounds per game at 13.76; a mark that leads the Summit League. The squad's overall rebounding average of 37.97 ranks second in the league and is in the top 55 nationally. Overall, the Hawks have out-rebounded their opposition 18 times this season. 

THE BIG O
Following his historic effort against #6 Alabama and a home win over South Dakota Mines, junior guard Treysen Eaglestaff was recognized on the national stage as he was one of five players named an Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week for games of the week ending Sunday, Dec. 22. Eaglestaff was joined by Donovan Dent (New Mexico), Caden Pierce (Princeton), Erik Reynolds (Saint Joseph's) and Bruce Thornton (Ohio State). He is the first Hawk to receive the honor since the award's inception in 2009-10.

PO1NTS, PO1NTS, PO1NTS
Eaglestaff's 40 points against Alabama, the 20th such game by a Fighting Hawk all-time, vaulted the junior guard into the 1,000-point club at UND. He became the 39th player in program history to reach the mark and the 12th to do it in UND's Division I era (2008-09). Currently, Eaglestaff is No. 18 on the scoring list with 1,289 points. He is 11 points shy of becoming the 18th player in program history to reach 1,300 and he is just 44 points shy of moving into the program's top 15.

A SCORING STORY
Eaglestaff has developed into one of the league's top scorers as he ranks third among Summit League players with 19.0 points per game, while his 552 total points are a top 20 total nationally and the third most in the league. He ranks third in the Summit League in field goals (182) and first in field goal attempts (436), which ranks 15th nationally.

TR3Y-POINT LAND
Eaglestaff eyes a move up the program record books as he is currently fourth in career three-pointers with 213 which makes him the program's leader in made three pointers among players that played their entire career in UND's D1 era. The Bismarck native is the fourth player in program history with 200 career made three-pointers. Additionally, Eaglestaff moved into third all-time on the Hawks' D1 three-point attempt list and he is currently fourth on the all-time list. 

This season, he ranks third in the Summit League in made three-pointers (76) and fourth in three-pointers per game (2.62). He is second in the league in attempts from range (206). 

KRAFTHREE
Redshirt freshman Zach Kraft has placed himself firmly in UND's rotation after totaling just 48 minutes with two three-point makes in six attempts through the season's first nine games. Since jumping onto the scene with a memorable performance against Alabama (9 pts), Kraft has seen action in each of UND's 17 games and during that time he is shooting 40.7% from deep (24-of-59) and 44.1% overall from the floor, while averaging 12.8 minutes per. 

1KULJUHOVIC
Senior forward Amar Kuljuhovic reached a personal milestone at Utah Valley. The Waterloo, Iowa product crossed over 1,000 career points in his collegiate career with a 13-point night against the Wolverines. He recorded 624 points in two seasons at Lake Land College and currently has 592 points in 60 games as a Fighting Hawk. 

The scoring milestone isn't the only one in reach for Kuljuhovic as he is 20 rebounds shy of 1,000 for his career. He registered 511 at LLC and currently has 469 as a Fighting Hawk with 169 coming on the offensive end of the floor. 

3DARIYUS
First-year Fighting Hawk, Dariyus Woodson, a TJC transfer and Baytown, Texas native, ranks 13th with 143 attempts from three-point range and 18th with 44 makes from three.  

HELPING HANDS
Four Hawks have recorded 50+ assists this season and three are over 60 helpers. Mier Panoam leads UND with 67 assists, while Eli King (64) and Treysen Eaglestaff (62) crossed over 60 for the season in the win over NDSU. Amar Kuljuhovic reached the 50-assist mark in the victory. 

MORE MAYAR
Mayar posted his fourth double-figure scoring effort of the season with 13 points on a perfect 6-of-6 shooting from the floor at Omaha. He's been a valuable rotation piece for the Hawks having played 20 or minutes in nine of 11 SL games.

He registered back-to-back double double efforts in a weekend home-and-home with UTSA. In two games against the Roadrunners, Mayar averaged 27.1 minutes and shot 53.3% (8-of-15) from the floor with a 50% (3-of-6) rate from three-point range. He went 5-of-7 from the line to average 12.0 points over the pair of contests. Mayar led UND in rebounding with 10.5 boards per game, including the second-most offensive rebounds at eight. 

UND BY THE NUMBERS
36- The number of Summit League wins for the Hawks under head coach Paul Sather. The Hawks won a program-best 10 Summit League games a season ago and have won seven or more league games in a season three times under Sather.
19.0- Junior guard Treysen Eaglestaff's scoring average in 29 games. It ranks as the third highest in the SL and is a top 40 mark nationally. His 552 total points this season rank in the top 20 nationally and are the second most in a single season in UND's SL history.
15- UND's national rank in offensive rebounds/game. The squad's mark of 13.76 leads the Summit League. UND has grabbed a dozen or more offensive rebounds in 24 of 29 games this season which is the most by a Sather-led UND team.
4- The number of Hawks that have recorded 200 made three-point shots in a single career after junior guard Treysen Eaglestaff surpassed the mark at Kansas City. He is UND's first exclusively Division I player in program history to do so.
3- The number of double doubles by Mier Panoam in Summit League play this season. Panoam recorded double doubles in both games against Kansas City and against St. Thomas. 

A UND WIN WOULD
» (coupled with a Denver loss at Kansas City) Lock the Hawks into the 6th seed for the SL Tournament
» Be the 11th for the Hawks against St. Thomas
» Give the Hawks their first three-game win streak of season
» Give UND its 13th DI season with no fewer than 12 wins
» Be better than a loss